Big Names Offering Their Endorsements in Key Races Across the State

CD-23: Add Mayor Julian Castro to the list of high profile Democrats throwing their support behind State Rep. Pete Gallego over former Congressman Ciro Rodriguez. Castro joins his brother State Rep. Joaquin Castro, State Rep. Mike Villarreal, and State Sentator Leticia Van De Putte in endorsing Gallego. Gallego had a significant fundraising advantage to go along with a plethora of endorsements, yet to the surprise of many, Rodriguez came out on top in round 1. However, Mayor Castro's endorsement in the Rodriguez friendly San Antonio is perhaps the most significant endorsement yet in giving Gallego the edge.

CD-25: In the battle of lunatics that is Congressional district 25, we have two failed Presidential candidates picking sides. In one corner, Governor Rick Perry has thrown his weight behind automotive dealer, Roger Williams. In a statement, Perry wrote, “Roger Williams will be a leader to stop Barack Obama's socialist agenda, make Congress abide by the Constitution and develop conservative solutions to help strengthen our economy.” Rick is at it again, valiantly assembling a team of intellectually challenged conservatives to take it to Obama's “socialist” regime, (a claim PolitiFact repeatedly deemed “Pants on Fire” on the truth-o-meter). Ironically, Williams' opponent, Wes Riddle, has accused Williams of accepting bailout money for his car dealership. On his website, Riddle wrote, “Like any car salesman, Roger Williams will say anything. For Roger to claim he opposed the $82 billion auto bailout when his dealership received bailout funds and his wife, who serves as president of the dealership, personally lobbied for the funds is ridiculous.” This hypocrisy resembles Perry and Republicans spending federal money he railed against to balance the state budget. Wes Riddle has earned the endorsement of Mr. Liberty himself, Ron Paul. Paul believes Riddle can win the district, saying “Liberty voters have a strong choice in this CD-25 Republican runoff. I hope my generous supporters will help Wes win this runoff because we need more men like him.” Perhaps it was Riddle calling for the impeachment of President Obama that inspired Paul's endorsement. Williams has been the favorite in this race from the beginning, with more money to spend and considerably greater name recognition. But Riddle's Tea Party support, and the 75 percent of voters who voted against Williams the first time around give Riddle a lot of room to maneuver.

HD-88: Republican State Representative and incumbent Jim Landroop earned the endorsement of Texas Commissioner of Agriculture Todd Staples. Landroop is in the midst of a surprisingly close contest with school board president, Ken King. Landroop can be considered one of Rick Perry's favorite lap dogs and earned his enthusiastic endorsement early on. Landroop should still be considered the favorite in this race with his superior name recognition in the region, but almost 70 percent of voters voted against him the first time, and he clearly has failed to convince voters that he is still the right man for the job.